Jane Zhang, the Dolphin Princess, Chinese Pop Diva [Youtube]

Amidst a time of deepening divides…

Here’s one rolling back time when bridges were being built between China and the US, in popular culture.

Jane Zhang (Zhang Liangying) 张靓颖 was one of 150,000 hopefuls from the hugely popular and interestingly named “Meng Niu Sour Yogurt Super Girl” in 2005. In 2007, 1.2 billion votes were cost for that competition, 15 times more than American Idol the previous year.

Reportedly, 1.3m text message votes were counted in final of the competition in her favour, though she did not win. Little matter, her ability to sing in a multitude of languages including English means she has a strong base to connect globally. Inspired by Mariah Carey, the Chengdu soprano appeared on the Oprah Show in 2009 with Simon Cowell in attendance.